Student Support

The Advisory Program plays an important role in the successful development of the total student. Each student has a faculty advisor who also serves as the student’s homeroom teacher and is available to students during scheduled advisory periods. The faculty advisor provides counsel about school routine, extracurricular activities, personal and social issues, study skills, course selection, and academic progress.

The advisor is the person designated to assist the student with any concerns, but students are encouraged to seek help from anyone in the school community so that all are available to form an important network of support to assist the student in his or her growth and development.

Each class is assigned a form dean in ninth grade who will serve as a go-to resource for students in that graduation class and their parents. The form dean works collaboratively with the other form deans and faculty advisors to ensure that every student receives the support and counsel necessary to achieve success. Students build strong bonds with their form deans and rely on them for ongoing advice, help, and support.

The Counseling Program supports the school's mission by focusing on the social and emotional development of students. In addition to students' advisors and Form Deans, the school’s Chaplain, nurses, psychologists and learning specialists are available to assist students.

The Upper School psychologist and counselor provide individual and group counseling support to address social, emotional, and behavioral needs. This includes responding to crises that may arise requiring mental health support; working collaboratively with students, families, faculty, chaplains, nurses and administrators; and serving as the EA liaison with external professionals working with EA students. The psychologist and counselor also assist the school’s learning specialists in interpreting psycho-educational evaluations and generating education plans and student action plans.

Serving as a liaison between the academic coaches, academic support staff, school psychologist, form deans, advisors and administrators, the learning specialist develops and implements programs and services designed to meet the needs of students. The learning specialist also develops academic support plans based on students' individual needs and discusses the implementation with both students and teachers. Finally, the learning specialist assists in teaching the Study Skills program for ninth graders.

Students whose teachers feel that they would benefit from an older student's support – in addition to teacher intervention during extra help periods – will be matched with members of the Cum Laude Society (comprised of the top 10% of the senior class) who have indicated an interest in tutoring younger students in specific subjects. The students meet together during free periods.

Students who struggle with social or academic transitions to high school will be identified by their form dean and matched with a senior mentor who has received training in how to support younger peers. The mentor pairs are created with attention to interests, hobbies, and personality matches.

Working closely with the advisor and form dean, an academic coach helps coach students on a one-on-one basis or in small groups who need help with organization, time management, and other skills that will help them advocate for themselves and gain confidence in the classroom.

Designed to help freshmen navigate Upper School, the III Form Workshop is a carefully planned, year-long course. Taught by academic coaches, students explore a variety of study skills to help them develop new habits and reach scholastic goals, including: organizational strategies; time management; environment management; anxiety management; note-taking skills; reading comprehension; writing skills; research skills; overcoming obstacles; analytical skills; math skills; test and exam preparation; and working effectively with teachers.

The students determine how to use their own learning and intellectual styles to achieve success. Since content is based on students’ specific courses, the syllabus does not create any additional workload. The academic coaches help students determine their long-term goals, create game plans, identify strengths and weaknesses, and navigate any barriers. Occasionally, older student mentors serve as role models, give advice and guidance, and help with the adjustment to Upper School. By the end of the year, students gain confidence, take ownership of their own learning, and discover how they can make themselves better learners.